'Joyland' released in some cinemas as government overturns ban

Hit hard by controversies, Pakistan’s Oscar entry, “Joyland,” a film that won awards at the Cannes Film Festival, has finally been released in some cinemas as the government has overturned the ban.

The movie was listed for viewing in some theatres across Pakistan on Friday, except in the province of Punjab, where the Information and Culture Department said it could not be exhibited “in the wake of persistent complaints received from different quarters”.

Reviews show cinemagoers have appreciated the “unconventional” theme. The gloablly accclaimed film tells the love story between the youngest son of “a happily patriarchal joint family” and a transgender starlet he meets after secretly joining an erotic dance theatre.

This is the first Pakistani movie shown at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize and the unofficial Queer Palm in May. It was then submitted to the Oscars as Pakistan’s official entry for the international feature film award.

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Joyland has been written and directed by Saim Sadiq and produced by Apoorva Guru Charan, Sarmad Sultan Khoosat and Lauren Mann. Film stars Sarwat Gilani, Sania Saeed, Ali Junejo, Alina Khan and Rasti Farooq in pivotal roles.

Sanam Chaudhary has a message for people supporting 'Joyland'